NeighborLink is excited to offer a little incentive. We all need a little incentive to start the projects we've been putting off. We hope to have several beautification projects completed this summer like getting homes painted, repairs made, and some fresh landscaping installed for example. Curb appeal, you know?

WHAT KIND OF PROJECTS QUALIFY?

Any home improvement or beautification project in the 468...02, 03, 05, 06, 07, or 08 that improves the overall street side exterior appearance of your home. This program is designed for beautification improvements.Total grant amount is up to 10 $300 grants.

Project Ideas:

-Soffit, gutter, or porch repair projects

-Exterior painting

-Concrete steps/walkway replacement

-Street side or entire house landscaping projects

WHO QUALIFIES?

Any homeowner or renter in Allen County can apply for reimbursement. If you are a renters then you must provide written approval from your landlord. Funding will be distributed on a first come, first serve basis and will be prioritized based on the order of applications received.

REQUIREMENTS:

-You must submit a proposal to Lyndsy at NeighborLink. Proposals will be reviewed on a first come basis and will be responded to within 10 days.

-Once approved, you have 30 days to initiate the project and then 60 days to complete the project once started. If you cannot begin/complete your project within these perimeters, contact Lyndsy to discuss other arrangements.

- Homeowners or landlords must pay for any labor or materials over the per project limit.

-Homeowners can create a "Work Day" and let your friends and neighbors know to encourage people to come and help with projects where applicable.

-Historic Codes must be followed where applicable.

HOW MUCH AND WHAT CAN BE PURCHASED?

-Up to $300 per household - Split Funding Grant Format.

-Supplies, materials and labor costs can be included.

-Funds will be reimbursed when project is complete and once receipts are submitted to Lyndsy.

-Example: Project cost is $500, NeighborLink will reimburse $250.

-$3,000 is designated for this program - First Come, First Serve.

In an effort to continue the overall improvement and development of our Neighborhoods, NeighborLink has has developed a program designed to support and incentivize neighbors to initiate exterior home improvement projects.

Landscaping, painting, soffit repair, concrete repair, etc., are all considered exterior beautification projects. We want to help you get started on a project that you've been wanting to start by offering this grant to you.

HOMEOWNER IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM APPLICATION

THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS SIMPLE.

Fill out the following form with your name, address, project description, and an approximate estimate of total project cost. We'll review and get back to you within 10 days with an approval or feedback on your application.

Once approved, you'll have 30 days to START the project and 60 days to COMPLETE it. If for some reason you cannot START it within 30 days or complete in 60 DAYS, notify Lyndsy at NeighborLink with your reasoning and a revised timeline for review.

Funding is a Split Cost Grant format and provided in a reimbursement format. If your project costs $300, we'll split your investment at $150 for example. This is good up to $300 per household. Don't forget to take before/ after photos and save those receipts! Project costs must be submitted to Lyndsy prior to reimbursement.

Life's circumstances left a young woman, mother to a 6 year old girl paralyzed from the legs down. Since her car accident she has relied on a wheel chair ramp to get in and out of her home. When she contacted NeighborLink she explained that there was a ramp connected to her trailer but it was not sturdy and beginning to wobble and sway. It was unsafe and alarming. So, NeighborLink volunteers rose to the challenge. They were not only able to build her a brand new deck they were able repurpose the old wood from her ramp. They used it for another ramp that was to be build in weeks to come.

When I showed up the wheel chair ramp was half way finished. The sound of power tools were competing with the sound of children laughing and shouting playfully. The NeighborLink volunteers were hard at work but they took the time to stop and greet me, as they did every new person that bopped by. Everyone was included and welcome. The neighborhood kids were all gathered around and wanted to be near the action. They knew where the boundaries were and respected them. It was really a neat dynamic to roll up to.

The flock of enthusiastic kiddos instantly asked me "What is in that big bag that you are holding?" Names come later, they jumped right to the important things. I replied, "I will tell you what is in my bag if you can help me with a small project?" They all shouted "Yes!" They were up for helping me and I was honored. So, I began to assign jobs to all the kids that I had just met. By the time they figured out how to get their aprons on and their hands clean I had the grill set up and hot. We all shared the title of chef and were on a mission to make sure everyone we could see got to eat dinner with us.

We grilled enough hotdogs for everyone to have two, even all the passerbys. The kids were very excited to feed everyone but most excited to feed the woman we were building the wheelchair ramp for. The kids began to argue over who got to serve her. But one little 6 year old's voice won the dispute. "She is my mommy and I want to be the one that makes her feel special." So, this very proud 6 year old carried a plate of hotdogs up the finished step portion of the ramp to her mommy. Behind her was a line of kids. One holding chips, one holding ketchup, one holding napkins. They figured out a solution.

A handful of people were excited about the idea of hotdogs for dinner but they were most curious about all the noise going on behind me and my grill. "So, what is NeighborLink anyways, and why are they doing this?" I had the honor of explaining how the generous group of volunteers behind me find great joy in helping people in this way. These men often build ramps for people they have never met. They feel The Holy Spirit moves them to do kind work for people in need. People seemed really stunned that the men behind me had never before met this women that they call their neighbor. "So do they go to the same church or something?" I was asked. "No, she just asked for help via NeighborLink and they showed up." I shared with them. One women was explaining how she had been meaning to come over and ask about their situation and see if they needed any help. "I just never got around to it, I guess I should probably try to bop in and do that soon." she said.

I am writing this story because it is very special me. I showed up to enrich everyone's NeighborLink experience by providing dinner and share with neighbors about NeighborLink's mission. This whole experience backfired and ended up enriching and helping me. The feeling I walked away with was pure joy that I was incapable of keeping to myself. My face was cracked in two for the rest of the evening. I just kept drifting in and out of astonishment. I was so moved. This experience inspired me to do my part louder and more frequently. It inspired me to shine as bright as I can, while I can. It inspired me to extrapolate happiness from the darkest of situations. This women reached out for help and in return ended up helping me. Now that is a miracle that I am overjoyed to have been apart of.

I love where I live. It is so much more than the place I call home. It's the place where my children's childhood home will always be. Where I married my husband and where I sow seeds in my garden. It's where I wave to my neighbors, my family as they drive by and of course to my mail lady Tamika. It is the place I race back to after a long day. So, when a photo of a huge mess that was dumped in a vacant lot was circulating in our neighborhood newsletter immediately I felt excited. I wasn't unhappy to see this mess, I was inspired. Inspired to be the very thing that I am to trying to encourage people to be thru my work at NeighborLink, A GOOD NEIGHBOR. Here is my opportunity to step outside of my yard and make a change in my own neighborhood.

My 1 year old Oliver and I loaded up the car with toys to entertain him and gloves and an Addison Agen CD to entertain me. Four people stopped to ask questions like, "What are you doing this for?, Who made this mess?, You know you can't drop these toys off here, there is already a big enough mess." One person even joined in and helped a bit while he was on his lunch break. He was so inspired and wanted to start doing things like this with his 11 year old daughter. He was so excited to hear about NeighborLink, where I work and decided this was going to be the platform he used to connect his daughter and himself to help his neighbors. I continued to clean drenched in joy.

Here in North Highlands we were just gifted a new playground at Hamilton Park that my son absolutly loves, as well as a new splash pad! This is our way of saying thank you to those who put the time, love, and effort into making that happen. I don't know how 7 huge tv's, a couch, a bag of dog food, old clothes, broken glass, and a bunch of old rugs got scattered all over a vacant businesses property. I don't know who is to blame. I just knew that I could do it. I knew this was more important than going to the zoo that day. I know that strangers have stepped up to help me when I was on the verge of giving up. I know that life can be unbearably hard sometimes. Maybe the people who were about to get fined for this mess were having a hard time? Maybe this 45 minutes that I took out of my day is capable of inspiring 45 minutes out of other people's days.

After living in this Neighborhood for 6 years nothing has made me feel closer and more proud to be apart of my neighborhood than this. Not swinging at the park, not pulling the kids in the wagon to the flower store, not becoming a member of the Neighborhood Association. Nope. Cleaning up a mess that wasn't my own is what gave me that feeling of belonging. It was a gift to me. It made me feel like I was doing something bigger than me. I was able to be the neighbor I would want to live alongside. As a mother I would love to know that my children are living in a neighborhood where people show grace and kindness when life gets though. I want them to feel at home in the place where my husband and I chose for them to grow. I see so much kindness here in North Highlands. I am just trying to keep up with The Jones' as they say.